FORTUNE-TELLING & DIVINATION. The history of the runes is mysterious. According to Norse mythology, Odin, the chief of the gods, hung himself in self-sacrifice from the world tree Yggdrasil for nine days and nights in order to receive cosmic wisdom. This was granted to him in the form of the runes. The word rune is derived from runa, an ancient Germanic word meaning whisper or mystery. The runes make up an alphabet that, with local variations, was...